An Entrepreneur column explores how to find a career path in the burgeoning field of blockchain technology.
Even when cryptocurrencies fluctuate, blockchain grows in utility and popularity—and as the industry grows, career opportunities also grow. With blockchain providing leading-edge solutions to tech needs and problems, there are more openings than there are qualified people to fill them. However, because everything is new, anyone looking to enter the field is covering new ground as well. The path to a career in blockchain is just as new and unpaved as the technology itself, so it's not as simple as earning a degree.
The column explores how to position yourself for a career in the blockchain industry, from building technical skills and pursuing cryptography education to theory and leadership.
In the past 18 months, blockchain has leaped onto the world stage and presented itself as the next-generation solution for many of the tech sector's most pressing problems. It's received influential endorsements from government leaders, industry titans and ambitious entrepreneurs in an unprecedented acknowledgment of the technology's prowess.
To be sure, they aren't wrong. Blockchain, which was first developed to account for the popular cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, is now one of the most dynamic technologies today. As The New York Times wrote back in January, "The Bitcoin bubble may ultimately turn out to be a distraction from the true significance of the blockchain."
All of this enthusiasm has created a surging demand for blockchain-related jobs. According to Upwork, a global freelance exchange, blockchain-related skills were the most in-demand on its platform in the first quarter of 2018. Moreover, TechCrunchreports that "Blockchain-related jobs are the second-fastest growing in today's labor market; there are now 14 job openings for every one blockchain developer."
Of course, blockchain technology is a new job sector without a tried and true path to success. Kids haven't grown up hearing about the technology while fostering ambitions to work on this novel tech. Therefore, the road to a career in blockchain is as new and innovative as the technology itself.
Image credit: Fabian Grohs on Unsplash
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